Sources in the Syrian opposition claim that Iran has already begun transferring its diplomatic and intelligence archives from Syria. The intelligence is said to include secret agreements between Tehran and Damascus, minutes of meetings of senior officials and reports relating to Iran’s support of Hezbollah from Syria.

Because of the looming possibility of Syrian President Bashar Assad falling out of power, Iran feared the information could be seized and used against it in international forums or serve as a justification for a future attack on Tehran.